History Manga / SaintSeiya

''Saint Seiya'' began as a manga written by Creator/MasamiKurumada and soon became an anime produced by Creator/ToeiAnimation and later spawned [[Franchise/SaintSeiya own franchise]]; it would become [[FollowTheLeader launcher]] of the "pretty boys in armor" subgenre of shonen fighting manga/anime (shows that followed it include ''Anime/RoninWarriors'', ''Manga/LegendOfHeavenlySphereShurato'', and even ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing'' if you replace "armor" with "mecha". ''Anime/{{Symphogear}}'' is a DistaffCounterpart). It tells the story of five friends who serve the reincarnation of the goddess Athena, Saori Kido, in her quest to reclaim her place as ruler of the Saints, a group of warriors themed after the WesternZodiac and pretty much every charted constellation.

Later arcs tend to follow this form, with a series of fights to reach the offending god or mortal intent on bringing about a worldwide calamity while working under a time limit, failure leading to Athena's death or the destruction of the world. These arcs were Asgard, Poseidon, Hades, and Heaven. Both the last are ongoing.

''Saint Seiya'' began as a manga written by Creator/MasamiKurumada and soon became an anime produced by Creator/ToeiAnimation and later spawned [[Franchise/SaintSeiya own franchise]]; it would become [[GenreLaunch launcher]] of the "pretty boys in armor" subgenre of shonen fighting manga/anime (shows that followed it include ''Anime/RoninWarriors'', ''Manga/LegendOfHeavenlySphereShurato'', and even ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing'' if you replace "armor" with "mecha". ''Anime/{{Symphogear}}'' is a DistaffCounterpart). It tells the story of five friends who serve the reincarnation of the goddess Athena, Saori Kido, in her quest to reclaim her place as ruler of the Saints, a group of warriors themed after the WesternZodiac and pretty much every charted constellation.

* '''Dragon Shiry''' ''[[MakingASplash (Water)]]'': TheRival to Seiya at first. Despite his tendency to become blind in battles[[note]]Only to later [[ThrowingOffTheDisability get better]][[/note]], he is one of the stronger fighters, not to mention the wisest one. Usually [[HighPressureBlood bleeds at least]] a [[OverdrawnAtTheBloodBank quart of blood]] per fight.

* '''Seiya The Pegasus Saint''' ''[[BeamSpam (Light]] and [[RapidFireFisticuffs Energy)]]'': The leader who often succeeded thanks to ThePowerOfFriendship. He is brash and loyal to a fault, although all his friends never give up. He's so HotBlooded that he often was the most capable of pulling off HeroicResolve. He often veered into TooDumbToLive territory, and is almost as hard to kill as Ikki.
* '''Shiryu The Dragon Saint''' ''[[MakingASplash (Water)]]'': TheRival to Seiya at first. Despite his tendency to become blind in battles[[note]]Only to later [[ThrowingOffTheDisability get better]][[/note]], he is one of the stronger fighters, not to mention the wisest one. Usually [[HighPressureBlood bleeds at least]] a [[OverdrawnAtTheBloodBank quart of blood]] per fight.
* '''Hyoga The Cygnus Saint''' ''[[AnIcePerson (Ice)]]'': Despite being a more-or-less devout Christian, he wholeheartedly helped Athena... yeah, good thing the setting was into CrossoverCosmology. He's also recognized by WordOfGod to be the smartest Bronze Saint. Notorious for his Oedipus complex.
* '''Shun The Andromeda Saint''' ''[[VariableLengthChain (Chains]], [[BlowYouAway Wind]] and [[PureEnergy Energy)]]'': He has perhaps the most destructive power of the core five, [[ReluctantWarrior and the most restraint on using it]]. He doesn't snap very often, but when it ''does'' happen, ''[[BewareTheNiceOnes SNAP]]'' he does!
* '''Ikki The [[ThePhoenix Phoenix]] Saint''' ''[[PlayingWithFire (Fire]] and Rebirth)'': The loner in the LonersAreFreaks sense, he's Shun's over-protective older brother and the BigBad in the Galaxian Wars Arc. Most likely to use CoolAndUnusualPunishment and FateWorseThanDeath with his [[MindRape psychic attacks]]. Also, possibly [[{{Immortality}} immortal]]/unkillable; since whenever people think he's dead, he'll keep on coming [[StayingAlive back...]] and [[DeathIsCheap back... and back...]] To make matters even better, [[CameBackStrong he always came back STRONGER]].

** Cancer Deathmask, called that due to a habit of adorning the walls of his temple with [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_mask death masks]] of his victims.[[note]]In the first English dub, the American censorship ended up giving him a proper name (Mephisto).[[/note]]

* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Cancer Deathmask, called that due to a habit of adorning the walls of his temple with [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_mask death masks]] of his victims.[[note]]In the first English dub, the American censorship ended up giving him a proper name (Mephisto).[[/note]]

* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Cancer Deathmask.[[note]]Except in the first American dub, where the censorship ended up giving him a proper name (Mephisto).[[/note]]

Wishing to repeat their success with ''Anime/SailorMoon'', the series was licensed and dubbed in English as ''Knights of the Zodiac'' (which is actually the name the series has in most of the world outside Japan) by Creator/DICEntertainment and shown on Creator/CartoonNetwork, but the plot and characters [[{{Macekre}} didn't receive very good treatment]]. It wasn't very popular, and only 32 of the 40 dubbed episodes aired. Creator/ADVFilms would later re-release the series on DVD with a new, much more faithful dub (note the page image), but they only had the license up to episode 60 due to it being the last episode that [=DiC=] had sub-licensed to them. In 2014, New Video Group released the complete Sanctuary arc in its subbed form, but even ''that'' flopped as well. Eventually, in October 2019, Netflix began streaming the series with a new English dub produced by Creator/SentaiFilmworks. This dub finally reached the end of the series in 2020.

** In the manga, while it's almost never clearly shown, ''every'' male Saint seems to wear the same white clothing under his armor: a sleeveless shirt and a weird pants-shoes combination (in the Poseidon arc, the heroes also add wraps in their hands-forearms and biceps). In very rare occasions, some characters fight with different clothing under their armor, most notably Seiya with his pseudo-greek clothing in the earliest chapters of the manga, or Shiryu with chinese civilian clothes in his first fight against Deathmask.

** In a minor manga-exclusive variation of the trope, Kurumada seemingly experimented with making the characters wear their armors shirtless during the Silver Saints arc, as seen with Seiya, Shiryu, and the minor villain Moses. The change is somewhat justified, since, as mentioned above, by the end of the Black Saints arc Seiya and Shiryu ''were'' shirtless. The look is rarely ever seen again, with minor exceptions like Tōma in Next Dimension.

''Saint Seiya'' began as a manga written by Creator/MasamiKurumada and soon became an anime produced by Creator/ToeiAnimation; it would become [[GenreLaunch launcher]] of the "pretty boys in armor" subgenre of shonen fighting manga/anime (shows that followed it include ''Anime/RoninWarriors'', ''Manga/LegendOfHeavenlySphereShurato'', and even ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing'' if you replace "armor" with "mecha". ''Anime/{{Symphogear}}'' is a DistaffCounterpart). It tells the story of five friends who serve the reincarnation of the goddess Athena, Saori Kido, in her quest to reclaim her place as ruler of the Saints, a group of warriors themed after the WesternZodiac and pretty much every charted constellation.

Over the years, several manga spin-off have been created by other authors, finished series include: ''Manga/SaintSeiyaTheLostCanvas'' (also adapted into a two-season OVA unlike it's predecessor, it was released in its complete form on DVD in December 2015), ''The Lost Canvas Gaiden'' (a series focusing on the Gold Saints, one per volume), ''Manga/SaintSeiyaEpisodeG'', ''Manga/SaintSeiyaEpisodeGA'' and ''Manga/SaintSeiyaSaintiaSho'' (also adapted into a single season anime in 2018)

Currently Masami Kurumada continues publication of his own sequel manga, ''Manga/SaintSeiyaNextDimension'', albeit at a very glaciar release schedule. Other author spin-off still being released include ''Saint Seiya: Meiō Iden - Dark Wing'' (an Isekai-themed series where a group of high-school students suddenly wake up in the world of Saint Seiya and take up Cloths and Surplices to battle in a new Holy War) and ''Saint Seiya Episode G Requiem''. In the meantime, we recommend another of Kurumada's works, ''Anime/BtX.''

The series has had several VideoGame adaptations:
* A 1987 {{Platform|Game}}-slash-{{RPG}} hybrid called ''VideoGame/SaintSeiyaOugonDensetsu'' for the [[UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem NES]], which received a 1988 sequel for the same system and a 2003 VideoGameRemake for the UsefulNotes/WonderSwan Color. They all cover ([[CompressedAdaptation in varying degrees of accuracy]]) the Sanctuary/Twelve Temples Saga.
* ''Saint Paradise - Saikyou no Senshitachi'', a pure {{RPG}} with cute SuperDeformed sprites released for the UsefulNotes/GameBoy in 1992, which covers all the way up to the Poseidon Saga.
* Two UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 {{Fighting Game}}s based on the Sanctuary and the Hades Saga, ''Saint Seiya: Sanctuary Battle'' released in 2005, and ''Saint Seiya: The Hades'' released in 2006.
* One of the most bizarre: ''Saint Seiya Typing Ryuseiken'', released in 2003 for PC, is a turn-based Japanese-only ''typing game''.
* A ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriors'' spinoff called ''Saint Seiya Senki/Chronicles'' (''Saint Seiya: Sanctuary Battle'' in Europe) for UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 released in 2011, by both Bandai Namco and Dimps.
* A Versus Fighter game running with the same engine as Saint Seiya Senki, ''Saint Seiya: Brave Soldiers'' was released in 2013 in all regions, surprisingly including America this time. Covers the basics of all three main Sagas.
* A sequel to Brave Soldiers, release date September 25th 2015, for [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 PS3]], [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 PS4]], and UsefulNotes/{{Steam}}, ''Saint Seiya: Soldiers' Soul'', includes the Gold God Cloths from 'Anime/SaintSeiyaSoulOfGold''. Notable in that it is the first game to actually cover the anime-only Asgard arc, and the game is also the first to be dubbed into other languages (no English dub, however) since the [=PS2=] games.

* ''Saint Seiya Omega: Ultimate Cosmos'', a 2012 FightingGame based off [[Anime/SaintSeiyaOmega the 2012 Anime spin-off]] for the UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable.

* ''VideoGame/SaintSeiyaOnline'', a [=MMORPG=] released by Sega in collaboration with Perfect World in Japan, South Korea, Thailand and South America. All services ended on June 2020.

* ''VideoGame/SaintSeiyaCosmoFantasy''

* ''VideoGame/SaintSeiyaAwakening'', a TurnBasedCombat gacha mobile game which covers the original manga's storyline, ''including'' Manga/SaintSeiyaNextDimension.

In Jump Festa 2011 a new movie was announced, originally planned to be released in 2013, ''Anime/SaintSeiyaLegendOfSanctuary'', was released in June 2014, done in full [[AllCGICartoon 3D animation]]. Its theme song, ''Hero,'' is composed and performed by Music/YoshikiHayashi as a part of Music/VioletUK.

Creator/DiscotekMedia licensed the first four ''Saint Seiya'' movies and released them in Japanese with English subtitles (whether they'll release the fifth film remains to be seen), while Cinedigm released a new DVD-release of the original anime covering the entire Sanctuary Arc.

In Spring 2012, an anime spinoff, ''Anime/SaintSeiyaOmega'' debuted, taking place twenty five years after the original. In Spring 2015, another anime spin-off, ''Anime/SaintSeiyaSoulOfGold'', aired from April to September 2015, lasting 13 episodes. In the fall of 2017, Netflix announced that they would collaborate with Toei Animation in producing a CG remake of the original series directed by Creator/YoshiharuAshino called ''Anime/SaintSeiyaKnightsOfTheZodiac''. In June 2022, it was announced that the second season of the series will now air on Website/{{Crunchyroll}}.
In August 2022 was released in France the first issue of ''ComicBook/SaintSeiyaTimeOdyssey'', taking place right after the fights with the Silver Saints in the original manga but before Aiolia is sent to japan. The comic book is published in Champion Red in japan with a chapter each month.

Plans for a live-action film titled ''Saint Seiya: Knights of the Zodiac'' was announced in 2017, in September 2021, casting: Mackenyu as Seiya, Madison Iseman as Sienna, Creator/SeanBean as Alman Kiddo, and Diego Tinoco as a hired man for kill the vulnerable goddess. Creator/FamkeJanssen, Nick Stahl and Creator/MarkDacascos were also announced as part of the cast, with [[Animation/TheCathedral Tomasz Baginski]] as the director.

* DualTonfas: The Gold Cloth of Libra comes with twelve weapons, including two thick golden tonfas.

In August 2022 was released in France the first issue of ''Comic/SaintSeiyaTimeOdyssey'', taking place right after the fights with the Silver Saints in the original manga but before Aiolia is sent to japan. The comic book is published in Champion Red in japan with a chapter each month.

* DarkSkinnedBlond:
** The brothers Leo Aioria and Sagittarius Aiolos.
** Cassios is a VERY AxCrazy version.

* EverythingsBetterWithSpinning: Seiya's ''Pegasus Rolling Crush'' attack, Shun's [[SpinToDeflectStuff Andromeda's Rolling Defense]].

* KillEmAll: Lots of people die. As in: [[KilledOffForReal for good]]. It simply [[DeathIsCheap isn't noticeable]] until the Hades arc. [[spoiler: All the Gold Saints (13, including Kanon), all the Silvers excluding Marin and Shaina (14), all the Mariners excluding Sorento (5, if you exclude Kanon), God knows how many filler villains and normal characters (i.e. Cassios, Hyoga's mom, etc.)...]]

* ZodiacMotifs: The Twelve Gold Saints are themed around the Western Zodiac, each one named after and having powers based around their zodiac sign, such as Cancer Deathmask and Leo Aiolia.

* YoungerThanTheyLook: Okay, [[YouShouldknowThisAlready so we know already about the main characters]] but when you think that the Silver Saints are in their teens while looking like 30-somethings, it starts to get weird.